


valentine's day

by falloutmars



Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: Canon Compliant, F/M, Fluff, Implied Sexual Content, Valentine's Day, if you ignore the end of last episode lol, lots and lots of kissing, nothing but fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-14
Updated: 2020-02-14
Packaged: 2021-02-22 15:17:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,846
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22718089
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/falloutmars/pseuds/falloutmars
Summary: Jughead hates Valentine’s Day. As standard, he hates any and all holidays - his birthday is the worst - but to him, Valentine’s Day is just a capitalized piece of shit.His girlfriend, however, loves it.–or, the Valentine's Day content we all want from the show.
Relationships: Betty Cooper/Jughead Jones
Comments: 18
Kudos: 88





	valentine's day

**Author's Note:**

> hi! i hope you enjoy this valentines day fic that was meant to be a drabble but accidentally ended up at almost 3k... whoops. its v soft and probably what we all need after last episode. enjoy!

Jughead hates Valentine’s Day. As standard, he hates any and all holidays - his birthday is the worst - but to him, Valentine’s Day is just a capitalized piece of shit. 

His girlfriend, however, loves it. Betty loves the romance of it all and has been trying to convince Jughead to celebrate with her. For the first two years of their relationship, he managed to dodge the dreaded day, with the pair of them having other arrangements, like solving murders and following cults. 

This year, though, into the third year of the relationship, things have finally calmed down in Riverdale and so Betty is _begging_ Jughead to do something for Valentine’s. And he tries, he tries his absolute hardest to wriggle out of it, but when has Jughead ever been able to say ‘no’ to Betty Cooper?

So when February 14 rolls around, Jughead finds himself partaking in a day of activities as planned by his wonderful girlfriend.

The day starts as it always does, waking up with his arms gently holding Betty. It’s his favorite part of any day, as well as falling asleep in the same position. It reminds him that despite everything, she’s still here with him. 

Today, her alarm wakes him. Betty stirs in his arms, yawning as she stretches over to turn the alarm off. As she does so, Jughead wraps his arms around her with a whine in an attempt to stop her from moving. She just giggles, leaning further forward, pressing the snooze button on her phone before she snuggles back into his arms.

After a moment, she begins shifting around.

“Morning,” he hums in a low voice, pressing a small kiss to her head. 

“Good morning, sleepyhead,” she whispers. “As much as I’d love to stay in bed all day, we’ve got a busy day planned.” She moves around, trying to untangle herself from his arms.

“Nooo,” he whines. “Five more minutes.”

“Nope. Up you get.” Betty wriggles out of his grip and out of bed, grinning at him. 

He gives her his absolute best puppy dog eyes that inevitably fail. Her stubbornness outshines him in every way almost daily. 

When he doesn’t move, he feels her grip onto the duvet still covering him and she tugs lightly. He knows what she’s going to do if he doesn’t move soon, and when he opens his eyes to look at her, she’s giving him a knowing smirk. 

“Okay, okay,” he grumbles, earning a small giggle from Betty as he stumbles out of bed. He _accidentally_ falls towards her and presses a kiss against her smiling lips. 

“C’mon, let’s get ready.”

He sighs, adding extra fake-protest in like he’s a child. “Are you gonna tell me what we’re doing yet?”

She looks at him contemplatively for a moment. “Well… Pop’s first, for breakfast of course, but the rest of the day is a surprise.”

He grins, scrambling into the bathroom before she gets a chance. “You should’ve told me that we’re getting food, Betty. I’ll be ready in no time!” he yells through the door. 

Approximately twenty minutes and a shared shower later, Betty and Jughead are on their way to Pop’s, walking hand in hand down Elm Street. Hair still damp, Jughead had given her his hat to wear, promising her that it looks _fine, well amazing actually,_ and that it’ll dry before they move along to activity two. 

They reach Pop’s, which is decorated with red and pink paper hearts hanging from the ceiling and advertising their special of heart-shaped pancakes. Usually, Jughead would immediately hate it, hate everything about it, but today, he… can’t help but kind of like it. Maybe this morning's activities made him more open to the displays of love. Or maybe it’s the influence of Betty. Probably both.

She leads him to a different booth than usual, past Pop, who sends them a sly smile. The booth she sits down in is a reserved one, a small handwritten sign saying so, along with their surnames in attempted cursive. Jughead’s fingers run across the edge of the paper, his lips curling into a smile when he notices the hyphen between their names. 

_Cooper-Jones._ It has a nice ring to it. 

He sits down opposite Betty, despite what his instincts are telling him. He’d prefer to be able to see her - and there’ll be plenty of time to be, well, closer later. Nerves suddenly creep up on him, but then she smiles at him, that beautiful _real_ smile, and he instantly feels at ease. 

“You want your usual?” she asks, completely unaware of his internal thoughts. 

It takes him a moment to reply, but instead of giving her an answer, all he can say is, “You did this? For me?”

“Yeah.” She blushes, looking away from him. “Is it too much?”

“No, I- Thank you,” he replies sincerely. He leans over the table and she meets him halfway. His hands cup her face, pulling her in for a kiss in the hope of showing her how much this means to him. 

When they pull back, she sits back down giggling. “Not that this unexpected PDA isn’t welcome, I did come here for breakfast so,” she jokes. “What’s it going to be?”

Much to Betty’s surprise, he orders the Valentine’s special, as does she, along with their usual milkshakes - chocolate and vanilla. They chat about nothing in particular whilst waiting for their food, simply enjoying the pressure-free environment and each other’s company. 

When it arrives, their plates are displayed beautifully, with two heart-shaped pancakes being the showpiece in the center, surrounded by red and pink sprinkles and fruit. On each pancake, a letter has been formed using whipped butter - a _J_ on one and a _B_ on the other. It’s almost sickly sweet, exactly what Jughead usually hates about today, but he just can’t help but think it’s… cute. 

He looks up to see Betty snapping a photo of her almost identical plate. He smiles at the sight, appreciating her in his beanie, doing all this for him. 

“Hey, Betts?” 

She looks up at him, pocketing her phone in the process. “Yeah?” she answers, a smile on her face. 

“I love you,” he says as if it’s the easiest thing in the world. But that’s because it _is_. Loving Betty Cooper is the easiest, most natural thing he’s ever done. 

Her smile transforms into a heartfelt grin. “I love you, too,” she replies. 

His grin matches hers now, the pair maintaining eye contact for a moment or so before Jughead jokingly says, “I might not love you for much longer if I don’t eat soon, though.” 

She rolls her eyes. “Jughead Jones and his insatiable appetite.”

He laughs, breaking dragging his gaze from her and towards his breakfast. He tucks in, thoughts still lingering on his beautiful girlfriend. This used to be somewhat rare, food being the one to occupy his thoughts, but falling in love with Betty changed that. He thinks almost solely of her and his life is immensely happier that way. 

Eating accompanied by their usual flirty banter makes the time fly, their breakfast date almost overrunning into Betty’s second activity for the day. They quickly down the rest of their milkshakes, and when Jughead offers - _insists_ \- he pays, she simply shrugs her shoulders and walks out, dragging him by the hand. Pop gives him another knowing grin, waving at them from behind the counter. 

They take the short walk back to Elm Street, where Jughead’s bike is waiting outside their house. He’s confused, knowing he left it in the garage when he last used it, but turning to Betty, the sly grin on her face gives it away. 

She dangles the keys, nudging a helmet and leather jacket towards him. “Hop on, Jug. I’m driving.”

He does as she says, watching as she removes his beanie from her head, shoving it in the pocket of her own leather jacket and puts on a helmet almost identical to his. To say he dies on the spot would be an understatement. 

Jughead knows she’s ridden his bike before. When her and Veronica broke Archie out of juvie, she borrowed it then, playing a card that kept them all safe. He, unfortunately and regrettably, was so caught up in the horrors of G&G that he missed such a vision. So other than when he first taught her to ride, her wobbling around an abandoned parking lot on the Southside and him almost dying of laughter, he’d never actually seen her ride so confidently, let alone be on the back of it. 

When he first tried to convince her that a motorbike was a good idea, she’d been reluctant, but after their first ride together, she’d told him that it made her feel like she was flying. He’d never fully understood that until today, until he experienced being on the back. It really does make him feel like he’s flying, and now he understands why she loves it so much. Hell, being wedged behind his girlfriend, arms wrapped around her waist, could never be a bad thing. 

For most of the thirty-minute journey, he closes his eyes and lets himself enjoy the feeling. But because of that, he doesn’t notice where they’re heading, making it a surprise when they come to a stop and he finally opens his eyes. They’re met with a neon sign, similar to that of Pop’s, saying, _Greendale Bowling_. 

He stumbles off of the bike, removing his helmet, as Betty somehow elegantly climbs off, smiling at him as she removes her own. 

“Bowling?” he questions, a hint of amusement in his voice. 

“Yep,” she shrugs, fishing his beanie out of his pocket, offering it to him. “You want it?” 

He shakes his head. “Keep it. Looks better on you.”

“Who knew you could be so cute?” she teases, shoving the beanie atop her now-dry curls. 

He blushes, _actually_ blushes, at her comment, deciding not to reply, instead kissing her deeply, far too deeply for a parking lot. _Who cares?_ he thinks, _it’s Valentine’s Day._

She happily returns the kiss with equal emotion, indulging him for a minute or so before she pulls away. He groans in protest but she just shrugs and leads him towards the entrance. 

Inside, it’s somehow even more ‘in-your-face’ Valentine’s than Pop’s. The usually relatively dark room is lit up with heart-shaped string lights, making the room a light pink color. Each bowling alley is decorated with hearts, and Jughead thinks that whoever did this must’ve put a lot of effort into it looking so… different.

He doesn’t hate it, though. At least, not as much as he thought he would. It is rather over the top, but he’s starting to think _why not?_ \- not that he’ll ever let Betty know that.

They collect their shoes and make their way over to alley three to begin their game, where a collection of equally-pink snacks have been left for them.

Jughead’s shoveling a handful of pink chocolate-covered pretzels into his mouth when Betty turns to him, a concerned look on her face.

“Hey… this isn’t too much, is it?” she asks for the second time today, fiddling with the hem of his beanie - something he does when he’s nervous too.

“No, of course not,” he reassures her, moving his hand to stop her fiddling, instead threading their fingers together. “I’ve never actually been bowling before so should I be prepared to get my ass kicked by you?” 

She laughs, one of her real, genuine laughs. “Oh, definitely. You’re going down, Jones.”

He starts the game badly, immediately throwing the ball right into the gutter, making Betty giggle uncontrollably, before promising to show him how it’s done. Of course, she does not disappoint, getting a strike on her first go. The rest of the first game follows on similarly, with Jughead failing miserably and Betty nailing every turn, so she wins by a mile. 

For the second game, instead of letting Betty win again, he enticingly asks her to _show me how_. Naturally, she agrees, and he ensures that he stands too close to her as he knows it drives her mad. Surprisingly (or not), he wins the second game, innocently insisting that it’s down to her _amazing_ teaching skills and nothing else. 

After the two games, they sit down together to finish the snacks. He can’t stop grinning, and she must notice.

“I’ve never seen you smile so much, Jug.” She jokingly rolls her eyes at him, stealing the last potato chip. 

“I would make some dry joke about it being the food or something, but honestly, it’s all you.”

She looks taken aback by his comment and he worries for a moment that he’s said the wrong thing. But then she speaks again, making all his worries disappear like the angel she is.

“I think I fall more in love with you every day,” she says before pulling him in for a bruising kiss. 

He kisses back, his mind whirling with her words and, _fuck_ , he loves her so damn much. He forgets where they are for a moment, wishing he could take this further but catching himself before he does. 

He pulls back, muttering, “I love you so fucking much, Betty,” against her lips, cementing it with a final hard kiss. 

“Let’s get out of here,” she smirks, pulling him up by the hand. 

Luckily, with it being the annual day of love and all, no one was overly bothered about their PDA, most other customers too wrapped up in themselves and the staff seemingly willing to turn a blind eye. So they manage to exit the bowling alley and reach his bike with little incident. 

“Let me drive?” he asks as she hands him a helmet. 

“Okay,” she replies. “But… we aren’t going home yet.”

He’s puzzled, but only for a moment before he remembers something Veronica said to him last week. “Where are we going?” he asks innocently.

“Well, it _was_ going to be the Bijou, but I’m thinking we skip to the next part of the plan.”

“If it involves going somewhere where I can kiss you more thoroughly, I’m in.” He grins at her, sending her a calculating look. 

“Did Veronica tell you?” she laughs.

He nods. “She is truly awful at keeping secrets.”

“Let’s not waste any more time, eh?” 

He smiles smugly, climbing onto the bike. She gets on behind him, wrapping her arms around him and signally to him that she’s ready. Starting up the bike, he rides away from Greendale and back towards Riverdale, ready for what’s next.

Less than half an hour later - with Jughead riding slightly faster than Betty, excitement levels running high - they pull into the underground parking lot of the Five Seasons. He parks in the closest available space, practically jumping off the bike. He offers Betty a hand to help her off, which she accepts, gracefully stepping off. 

Unable to resist, Jughead pulls her into a kiss, hands finding their way to cup her face. She smiles into it, making it increasingly difficult to deepen this kiss, so he pulls away. “C’mon, Jug, let’s move this inside.” She tugs on the front of his jacket in an attempt to hurry him along.

It works. He takes a step back, threading their fingers together and walking up the stairs and around to the hotel lobby. They check in easily, able to keep themselves composed until they make it up to their room for the night. 

Once there, they make quick work of putting an empty room to good use. It’s not something they’ve gotten much of recently - living with both Alice and FP has _many_ downsides - so over the next few hours, they ensure they use it _over and over_. 

Much later that night, Jughead is laying with Betty in his arms. He’s thinking about how lucky he is to have such a breathtaking girlfriend as he gently strokes her hair. She’s still awake, he thinks, and fully satisfied for now, allowing for him to bask in the glow of their whole day together. He can’t believe that she organized all of this for _him_. He’s so lucky and he’s so fucking in love with her.

“Hey, Betts?” he whispers, careful not to be too loud in case she’s still asleep.

She hums sleepily in reply.

“I just want to say… Thank you for today. It’s been incredible.” He pulls her closer, pressing a soft kiss to her head.

Looking up at him, she murmurs, “You deserve it,” with a small shrug. 

This time, he leans down to kiss her properly and thoroughly. “I love you so much,” he mumbles in between kisses, not pausing long enough for her to reply, but the passion she puts into kissing him back says it all. 

The following morning, after hardly any sleep, Jughead lays next to a still-sleeping Betty. He watches her for a moment and thinks to himself, _maybe Valentine’s Day isn’t so bad after all_ , before cuddling into her and falling back to sleep himself. 

_~fin_

**Author's Note:**

> i hope you liked this little fic of mine. as always, comments and kudos are very much appreciated - i still live for ao3 emails. thank you so much for reading!!


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